Their words, not ours
The statement above is cut straight from the content of Digital Britain, the interim report from the DCMS on Britain’s digital future. It makes interesting reading and has implications for us all. To save you time, we’ve pulled out 10 top passages and published them below.
1. Ready
British consumers have a huge appetite for new digital services, with high levels of take-up of new networks and devices. This in turn creates a market environment which unlocks new commercial possibilities and encourages innovation in new content, services and applications.
2. Sitting ducks
These changes (in consumer habits) are challenging the economics of intermediaries of all kinds and more traditional types of content companies – publishers, the music industry, the newspaper industry and broadcasters – in particular.
3. New rules
When there is very widespread (contrarian) behaviour and social acceptability of such behaviour that is at odds with the rules, then the rules, the business models that the rules have underpinned and the behaviour itself may all need to change.
4. Reach
In the UK today over nine in ten households can get first generation broadband. Six in ten households have today already adopted it, a higher percentage than most other major economies.
5. Broadband everywhere
Several other countries are now moving to a universal service commitment for broadband. America, France, Australia and Finland have all announced plans for a universal guarantee.
6. Untapped potential
In the UK, an estimated 17 million people over the age of 15 are not using computers and the Internet. We need to build the awareness of the benefits of internet technology to enhance the life chances of all. Otherwise inequality in the use and application of digital technologies is potentially a significant new driver of social exclusion in the 21st century, which risks accelerating existing social divides and creating new ones.
7. User experience
We (the Govt) commit to ensure that public services online are designed for ease of use by the widest range of citizens, taking advantage of the widespread uptake of broadband to offer an improved customer experience and encourage the shift to online channels in delivery and service support.
8. Like, hello!
This country has the potential to become a leader. All the evidence is that effective deployment, understanding and use of digital technologies are crucial to every business’s competitiveness. For some it is transforming.
9. Bottom up
The simple message at the core of this interim report is that we cannot afford to treat education and training for digital technologies as just another ‘vertical’ subject area. It underpins everything we do in the 21st Century. Successful, emerging economies have already embraced this message. We must do likewise.
10. The Googlies
(We) need effectively to engage an entire generation growing up with the internet, multi-media formats and broadband. This starts with inspiring and innovative programmes and initiatives to engage a new generation of students and attract them into technology-inspired and creative careers.